Air quality

Perth & Kinross Council is committed to making the Perth & Kinross a pleasant place to live, work and visit and a key contributor to these factors is clean air. Air quality is essential to our health and wellbeing and as such, maintaining and improving air quality plays a vital role within Perth & Kinross Council's functions.

Air quality can be affected by traffic, factories, fumes and burning. The air quality in Perth & Kinross is generally good however, there are areas of pollution of which are often caused by road traffic.

All visitors, residents and commuters to the area can help maintain the quality of the air in Perth & Kinross Council by choosing environmentally sustainable travel methods and day-to-day life choices.

How and where we monitor

We measure the air quality in Perth & Kinross Council at more than 70 locations using specialist equipment including four automatic air quality monitoring stations.

By law, we must assess the presence of eight pollutants and the levels we measure are set at a level to protect the public's health.

Our recent assessments show that Perth & Kinross Council's air quality meets the government's objectives for five of these pollutants:

• Sulphur dioxide (SO₂),
• Benzene,
• 1,3-butadiene,
• Carbon monoxide (CO) and
• Lead (Pb)

These assessments show that the other three pollutants - nitrogen dioxide (NO₂), fine particulates and ultra-fine particulates (PM₁₀ and PM_2.5) - exceed or may likely exceed the government's objectives at a few isolated locations.  This means we must monitor more detailed levels of these three pollutants at these sites.

Air quality monitoring station

We monitor the presence of these three air pollutants - nitrogen dioxide (NO₂), fine and ultra-fine particles (PM₁₀ and PM_2.5) 24/7 at the following Real Time Monitoring Stations:

• Atholl Street (monitored for NO₂, PM₁₀ and PM_2.5)
• Main Street Bridgend, Perth (monitored for NO₂, PM₁₀ and PM_2.5)
• James Square, Crieff (monitored for NO₂, PM₁₀ and PM_2.5)
• Glasgow Road, Perth (monitored for NO₂, PM₁₀ and PM_2.5)

Each of these monitoring stations has a QR (Quick Response) code sticker attached to them. These stickers can be scanned using a smartphone to provide current air quality levels at each specific site (data provided by Air Quality in Scotland).

In addition to the above Real Time Monitors, Perth & Kinross Council has a network of over 80 nitrogen diffusion tubes distributed throughout the Local Authority area. These tubes each provide an annual mean concentration which helps build our knowledge of air quality levels across the region. Recent diffusion tube results can be viewed in our Air quality reports or on the Air Quality in Scotland website.

What we monitor

In Perth & Kinross Council we monitor our air quality continuously for the presence of the following three pollutants:

Nitrogen dioxide (NO₂) - where it comes from:

• Car and other vehicle exhausts (both petrol and diesel engines)
• Power stations
• Some chemical processes

Related health impacts:

NO­₂ has the ability to irritate the lungs and enhance the opportunity of falling ill to respiratory infections such as the flu.

Fine Particulate Matter (PM₁₀) and Ultra-Fine Particulate Matter (PM_2.5) - where they come from:

• Car and other vehicle exhausts (both petrol and diesel engines)
• Power stations
• Natural sources such as wind-blown particles of fine dust and soil, biological particles, for example fungi and pollen, and sea salt.

Related health impacts:

Fine particles such as PM₁₀ can be accumulate in your nose, throat and lungs where they can cause inflammation (particularly in those with cardiovascular or respiratory issues). These particles can also carry carcinogens into the lungs.

Ultra-Fine particles like PM_2.5 can reach even deeper into your lungs than PM₁₀, where they have the potential to do more damage to the respiratory and cardiovascular systems in your body.

What Air Quality Standards must we aim for

We must make sure the air quality in Perth and Kinross meets strict legal standards, which are set out in the National Air Quality (Scotland) Regulations.

The Air Quality Strategy for England, Scotland, Wales and Northern Ireland (2007) sets out the government's latest national air quality standards and objectives (as described by the Air Quality (Scotland) Regulations 2000 and subsequent amendments).  It also sets out policy measures intended to improve air quality throughout the UK, directly benefiting human health and protecting the environment.

We must assess whether the following eight pollutants are present in the air, and at what levels:

• Benzene
• Carbon monoxide (CO)
• 1,3 - butadiene
• Lead (Pb)
• Nitrogen dioxide (NO₂)
• Sulphur dioxide (SO₂)
• PM₁₀ (fine particles)
• PM_2.5 (ultra-fine particles) 

What happens when air quality doesn't meet those standards?

Should monitoring indicate that levels of a particular pollutant will exceed the objective level set by National Air Quality (Scotland) Regulations in any given year, the area concerned should be designated an Air Quality Management Area (AQMA) and an Air Quality Action Plan must be implemented aimed at reducing levels of the pollutant at that location. 

We currently have two AQMAs; Perth City and Crieff High Street. These areas were originally declared because levels of road traffic pollutants, nitrogen dioxide (NO₂) and fine particles (PM₁₀), were found to be above the air quality objectives. 

Air quality action plans

Since declaring the AQMAs we have produced our action plans and are working with various Perth & Kinross Council services and other organisations to improve the air quality. 

As a result of the measures implemented over recent years, we have already seen improvements in the air quality within both AQMAs. Levels of NO₂ and both PM₁₀ and PM_2.5 in Crieff are now below the air quality objectives, and levels in Perth are also below the objective in the majority of locations.  

Full details on the measures intended to improve the air quality can be viewed in the  Perth Action Plan (PDF) [10MB]  and Crieff Action Plan (PDF) [2MB] .

Where are problem areas in Perth and Kinross?

Atholl Street, Perth

Atholl Street in Perth is the primary pollution hotspot within the Perth Air Quality Management Area. This area suffers from a phenomenon known as the 'canyon effect', where the combination of high sided buildings with high volumes of road traffic and congestion contribute to a lack of dispersal of polluted air. This can lead to a build up of pollutants, which has resulted in exceedances of the national objectives in the past. 

Main Street, Bridgend

Similar to Atholl Street, Bridgend also suffers from the 'canyon effect' due to the high sided buildings and three lanes of traffic in the area. Perth & Kinross Council recently moved one of our Real Time Monitors to Bridgend to assess the pollution at this location in more detail. In addition, with the construction of the new Cross Tay Link Road nearby it is hoped that monitoring in this area will be able to accurately assess the affect it will have on current and future traffic levels. 

Crieff High Street

Crieff suffers from a similar phenomenon to Atholl Street and Bridgend in that high sided buildings create a street canyon which restricts dispersal of pollution. The A85 narrows considerably within Crieff High Street, restricting the flow traffic and leading to congestion which further contributes to pollutant levels in the area. In recent years levels have remained below the national objectives in the Crieff Air Quality Management Area, however Perth & Kinross Council will continue to monitor the area to ensure this downward trend is not reversed. 

How you can help improve air quality

There are many ways in which you can assist Perth & Kinross Council in maintaining and improving our air quality. There is no quick-fire solution to solve the issue of air pollution and as such, multiple measures aimed at living a more environmentally sustainable life are key in reducing your own carbon footprint. These measures include but are not limited to: 

Use public transport

• Using buses and trains for leisure and commuting helps reduce the volume of traffic on the road. This assists in reducing congestion and improves traffic management within Perth & Kinross Council area. 
• Public transport is generally cheaper than using a private vehicle as road tax, MOTs, insurance, licensing, and possible breakdowns are avoided. The cost of parking is also removed. 
• A portion of buses within Perth & Kinross Council utilise the latest technology aimed at reducing the impact they have on air quality. 
• Perth has great rail links to the rest of Scotland. 

Use your car less

• By carpooling and joining car clubs, private vehicle users can club together to curb their emissions by car sharing and utilising services that ultimately reduce the number of journeys being made and the number of vehicles on the road. 
• When stopped for a prolonged period of time, avoid leaving your engine running and creating unnecessary emissions. 
• Choose less polluting fuels such as petrol engines over diesel and hybrid or electric systems. 
• Utilise technology to your advantage by hosting virtual meetings to avoid unnecessary vehicle use. 

Use electric & hybrid vehicles 

• Electric cars are becoming more prominent in the UK and Perth & Kinross Council has multiple public charging outlets across the local authority area. 
• Electric cars, on average are cheaper to fuel/charge than combustion engines. Electric vehicles are generally more cost effective than petrol/diesel vehicles with a lower cost of ownership, servicing and no 'Road Tax' costs. 
• Electric vehicles have zero combustion-based emissions thus reducing your carbon footprint. 

Try active travel

• In some instances, cycling can be just as fast, if not faster than travelling by vehicle, particularly in rush hour traffic. 
• Like public transport, the cost of buying and maintaining a bicycle is much cheaper than a private vehicle. 
• Walking and cycling produce no direct emissions of key pollutants and on average, 2kg of carbon is saved for every short journey made using a bicycle. 
• Walking and cycling have multiple physical and mental health benefits combined with improving fitness levels. 

Get involved with clean air day

• Get involved in Perth & Kinross Council's Clean Air Day events where possible.